What is a "professor"?

A long time ago when I was starting my teaching career, on a cross country trip, sitting on the next seat on the plane was a professor from the University of Chicago. He asked me what I did for a living. Proudly, I proclaimed I am a professor. He asked me what I profess. I was embarrassed. I knew what he meant. Oxford dictionary gives two meanings for a professor. First, someone who teaches, and second someone who affirms a faith in or allegiance to something. He meant the second, while I had meant the first. I have worked in at least four fields and held faculty appointments in all those (Management Science, Information Systems, Accounting/Auditing, and Informatics/Information Science). I would be frightened to have to affirm “faith” in or owe allegiance to any of the four, or anything if life for that matter. The word “faith” cringes me as an academic. I prefer my perch as a sceptic. Since then, when someone asks me what I do for a living, I tell them I am a teacher.

Once I served as a department chair. While I did quite well in ensuring the survival of the department, I consider that decision to be the biggest mistake of my life.